Charging device for smelting furnaces



Jan. 7, 1964 F. KocKs 3,116,341

CHARGING DEVICE FOR SMELTING FURNACES Filed Sept. 5, .1962

Jnvenfor:

214ml, {his United States Patent QHARGHNG DEVICE FGR SMELTING FURNACES Friedrich Koehs, Freiiigrathstrasse 1, Dusseldorf, Germany Filed Sept. 5, 1962, Ser. No. 221,486 Ciaiins priority, application Germany Sept. 23, 1961 3 Claims. (til. 214-31) My invention relates to a charging device for smelting furnaces, such as the Siemens-Martin type furnaces, and more particularly to a furnace charging device equipped with a trough which is carried by an arm and tipped about the longitudinal axis of the arm after the trough has been introduced into the furnace.

This application is related to copending application Serial No. 221,591 to Franz Joseph Ginter, filed September 5, 1962, for Charging Device for Siemens-Martin smelting Furnaces, assigned to the present applicant; and reference may be had to said copending application for further descriptive matter in order to better understand certain structural features, such as the drive, the sup,- porting truck and rollers of the charging device.

in order for such charging devices of the prior art to be able to distribute the material being charged over a relatively large surface of the melt in the furnace, the depth of the trough must be considerably reduced, or the trough is sometimes even designed as a substantially flat plate so that the material will start to slide off laterally, even at a small tipping angle, and therefore will not accumulate as much in the center of the melt immediately below the trough, as is the case with troughs having pronounced side walls. However, the elimination of side walls means, on the other hand, a reduction of the amount of material which can be introduced with each charge, since the material cannot be piled very high on a substantially flat plate.

It is therefore an object of my invention to elimihate this inconvenience, while fully maintaining the advantages of a flat or substantially fiat charging trough or plate.

Another object of my invention is to provide means for controlling a furnace charging device in such a way that the side walls of the charging trough are axially movable and are retained in the region of the furnace charging door when the trough enters the furnace, and are returned to their starting position when the trough leaves the furnace.

A further object of my invention is to provide a furnace charging device wherein movable side walls are provided for increasing the trough capacity and wherein these side walls are limited in their axial movement in the direction toward and away from the furnace.

To these ends and according to one feature of the invention, the charging trough is provided with axially movable side walls. These side walls are displaceable relative to the trough bottom in the direction of the axis of the supporting arm and are so controlled that they are retained with their respective front ends partially in the furnace, in the region of the furnace door, when the trough is introduced into the furnace, and are then returned to their initial starting position when the trough leaves the furnace. The capacity of the trough is thus considerably increased by the side walls. In spite of this, the device, on being emptied within the furnace, does not respond differently as to capacity from the known structures having only a slightly curved trough or even with a fiat or substantially flat charging plate, since the side walls of the invention, being retained in their axial movement, cannot prevent the material from sliding off over the lateral edges when the trough is tilted over to even a small tipping angle. It is irrelevant Patented Jan. 7, 1964 that a part of the material may begin to slide off laterally during the introduction of the trough, since this material also arrives at its destination on the molten bath.

According to a more specific feature of my invention, the side walls need not be secured directly onto the trough. In the preferred embodiment of the invention, the side walls are movably supported on rollers arranged on the truck of the charging device. This has the advantage that relatively sensitive parts, such as guides and rollers, never reach the furnace and are thus not subjected to high temperatures. Such a design is to be preferred, particularly when the trough or plate is permanently connected with the arm.

According to another feature of the invention, the side walls are provided with a separate electric, hydraulic or pneumatic drive, which is controlled, for example, by contacts or limit switches. In the preferred embodiment of the invention, however, simple stops or abutment columns are used for driving and limiting the movement of the side walls, which stops respectively limit the movement of the walls in the direction toward the furnace and also in the direction away from it.

A preferred embodiment of the invention is represented schematically in the attached drawing in which:

FIGS. 1 and 2 each show a side view of a charging device according to the invention, in two respectively different operating positions; and

FIG. 3 shows a section taken along the line IIl-III in FIG. 2.

The illustrated charging device comprises a truck 1 on which is mounted a horizontal arm 2 protruding to the left, which is adapted to be rotated about its longitudinal axis by means of a suitable drive (not shown). Reference may be had to the above-mentioned copending application Serial No. 221,591, filed September 5, 1962 for details of such drive. The truck 1 is provided with transport wheels 3 which move parallel to the axis of rotation of the arm, and with rollers 4- guided in a rail guide 5 tov prevent the rollers 4 from lifting and thus prevent the device from tipping forwardly.

The horizontal arm 2 carries at its free end a trough bottom 6 which is formed with a slight curvature, and which is stiffened by ribs 7 (FIG. 3). This bottom per so could ordinarily contain only a relatively small amount of material. In order to increase the capacity, two side walls 8 are provided in the form of two profiled angle irons or channel beams arranged parallel to the arm 2. The side walls are mounted on the truck 1 by means of rollers 10 riding on rails 9 fixed to the truck. The side walls are thus longitudinally displaceable relative to the truck 1. In the position according to FIG. 2, the side walls 8 extend lengthwise outwardly up to the front edge 11 of the trough bottom 6, thus considerably increasing the capacity of the trough, as is best seen in the view of FIG. 3.

After the trough consisting of the bottom 6 and the side walls 8 has been filled from the charging magnets in the charging position of the device according to FIG. 2, by moving arm 2 it is then introduced through the furnace door 13 into the furnace 12, indicated schematically in FIG. 1. When the front end 11 of the trough bottom has just passed the furnace door 13, the stops 14 on the side walls 8 strike against forward stop columns 15, so that the side walls 8 are retained and the trough bottom 6 enters the furnace proper without them. The material falling off laterally when side walls 8 are held back will still fall onto the surface of the melt, since the side walls pro trude with their front edges 16 partially into the furnace opening and retain the material in position on the trough bottom 6 up to this point.

After the trough 6 has been completely emptied by tipping, the charging device is withdrawn from the furmace and returned to the position according to FIG. 2. The side walls 8 participate in this return movement until their rear end faces 17 strike against rearward stop columns 1%, which stop them again and thus restore the situation represented in FIG. 2.

It will be obvious to those skilled in the art, upon studying this disclosure, that devices according to my invention can be modified in various respects and hence may be embodied in apparatus other than particularly illustrated and described herein, without departing from the essential features of my invention and within the scope of the claims annexed hereto.

1 claim:

1. Charging device for a smelting furnace, comprising carrier means movable toward and away from the furnace, a supporting arm carried by said carrier means and I0- tatable about its longitudinal axis, a charging trough bottom, means mounting said bottom at the forward end of said arm for actuation by said arm so that said trough bottom dumps its contents within the furnace, side walls disposed laterally of said trough bottom, and means dis placeably mounting said side walls on said carrier means for moving said trough bottom relative to said side walls in the direction of said longitudinal axis, and means for controlling the movement of said trough bottom relative to said side walls so that said side walls are retained in the vicinity of an entrance to the furnace when said trough bottom enters therein and for returning said trough bottom to a position laterally adjacent to said side walls when said trough bottom is removed from the furnace.

2. Charging device according to claim 1, said carrier means including a truck, and said mounting means including rails and roller means for displaceably supporting said side walls on said truck.

3. Charging device according to claim 1, said control means including stop means for limiting the displacement travel of said side walls toward and away from the furnace in a direction parallel to said longitudinal axis.

No references cited. 

1. CHARGING DEVICE FOR A SMELTING FURNACE, COMPRISING CARRIER MEANS MOVABLE TOWARD AND AWAY FROM THE FURNACE, A SUPPORTING ARM CARRIED BY SAID CARRIER MEANS AND ROTATABLE ABOUT ITS LONGITUDINAL AXIS, A CHARGING TROUGH BOTTOM, MEANS MOUNTING SAID BOTTOM AT THE FORWARD END OF SAID ARM FOR ACTUATION BY SAID ARM SO THAT SAID TROUGH BOTTOM DUMPS ITS CONTENTS WITHIN THE FURNACE, SIDE WALLS DISPOSED LATERALLY OF SAID TROUGH BOTTOM, AND MEANS DISPLACEABLY MOUNTING SAID SIDE WALLS ON SAID CARRIER MEANS FOR MOVING SAID TROUGH BOTTOM RELATIVE TO SAID SIDE WALLS IN THE DIRECTION OF SAID LONGITUDINAL AXIS, AND MEANS FOR CONTROLLING THE MOVEMENT OF SAID TROUGH BOTTOM RELATIVE TO SAID SIDE WALLS SO THAT SAID SIDE WALLS ARE RETAINED IN THE VICINITY OF AN ENTRANCE TO THE FURNACE WHEN SAID TROUGH 